[OU] Rate my League Mono-Grass Team

[Sitherio]

A College club I'm in is setting up a League and I wanted to be a Mono-Grass trainer. The rules are Smogon OU rules, with an emphasis placed on Mono-type teams, but I don't think is restricted to that. I'm new to the whole competitive scene and wanted more experienced opinions on my sets or recommended unusual sets. This team has worked out a little over half of the matches I have done. A lot of these Pokes are my favorites out of this type so there is definite bias in team make-up. Please check them out.

Cacturne - Life Orb
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
- Sucker Punch
- Destiny Bond
- Seed Bomb
- Swords Dance

My Physical Attacker and a favorite of mine. Very standard set. I use him often when Psychics try to take-out Mega-Venusaur. Since I have Ferroseed to set up hazards I made him into a Physical Sweeper with Life Orb giving him an extra punch with his attacks, rather than a Focus Sash. The attacking moves are there for STAB, Swords Dance it terrifying if it can set up, and Destiny Bond is a last resort to get an extra turn or take a Poke out if they're over-confident or unfamiliar with Destiny Bond. EVs make the most I can out of Speed and Attack.

Ferroseed - Eviolite
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Nature: Relaxed
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Protect
- Gyro Ball
- Leech Seed

My Physical Wall and hazard setter. Also a favorite with a standard set. I gave him Stealth Rocks as Fire, Flying, Bug, and Ice types are going to be my bane and rocks hits all of them hard. Protect is there for synergy with Leech Seed. Decided Leech Seed over Synthesis so there is more residual damage+renewal and encourages a switch. Gyro Ball is there for STAB and for Taunt. Eviolite of course because it's Ferroseed and not Ferrothorn. This Poke has effectively switched into Talonflame Brave Bird and taken it out with Iron Barbs (love this ability). EVs were intended to make sure he tanks all Physical attacks ("YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!!!")

Cradily - Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Nature: Calm
- Hidden Power [Rock]
- Recover
- Toxic
- Protect

My Special Wall with a Toxic stall. Has met with mixed results so far. Standard set again. Cradily is using Leftovers for life-gain of course. The move set is your standard Toxic stall, with Recover and Protect. HP Rock for STAB and synergy with Storm Drain. It also effectively hits Fire and Flying types. Evs are used to make the most out of Cradily's Special Defense bulk with a little leftover for Special Attack.

Venusaur - Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 232 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 20 Spe
Nature: Modest
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Sludge Bomb
- Synthesis

This is my Special Sweeper and Fire-, Ice-type buffer. So amazing to watch it annihilate poor souls. It's running a very standard set though. Giga Drain for STAB and health gain, Sludge Bomb for coverage and STAB, Synthesis for health regeneration, and HP Fire for more coverage and makes Venusaur the most effective way to deal with Steel-types or Ice-type. Evs make use of Venusaur's bulk and Special Attack. The investment in Speed and Special Defense are to outspeed Adamant Azumarill and lower residual damage.

Rotom-Mow - Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Will-O-Wisp

This is my lead often. Always a solid Poke. Will-O-Wisp is new to the set. It was originally Trick, but that's seen next to no use or back-fired. Standard set otherwise. Choice Scarf for awesome speed since he generally Volt-switches out. Leaf Storm for terrifying STAB, Volt Switch is there for momentum, Thunderbolt for strong staying power and STAB, Will-O-Wisp for surprise status effect and cripple Physical Attackers. The EV spread is to hit hard and fast. That's about it.

Ludicolo - Assault Vest
Ability: Own Tempo
EVs: 164 HP / 140 Def / 68 SpA / 136 Spe
Nature: Bold
- Fake Out
- Giga Drain
- Ice Beam
- Scald

This is a...I'm not sure what you'd classify it. Ludicolo seemed great typing for this team to cover weaknesses and has been a great benefit in every match. Own Tempo is nice so he doesn't get confused. Fake-out is for breaking consecutive moves and nice priority+flinch. Giga Drain is wonderful STAB along with Scald (this can also burn, which is useful if it happens), and Ice Beam for coverage and one of my only anti-dragon moves despite Sludge Bomb. Assault Vest give Ludicolo even more bulk and allows the EV spread to give it defensive investment, making Ludicolo rather balanced. Further investment in speed allows him to outspeed Rotom-W, and then the rest can go into special attack.

Any thoughts?

 

[Onyx Tanuki]

I have to ask, why Ferroseed over Ferrothorn? If you're using OU rules then Ferrothorn should be allowed, and while Ferroseed has slightly better Def and SpDef because of Eviolite, Ferrothorn's added HP more than makes up for the difference. While its lower Speed means slightly stronger base power on Gyro Ball, Ferroseed's got much lower Att, so Ferrothorn's gonna have a stronger Gyro Ball overall. The only benefit I can imagine is gaining a higher percentage of its health back via Leech Seed, which IMO isn't worth it when the total HP isn't higher. I would strongly suggest running Ferrothorn instead, and give it either Leftovers for passive recovery or Rocky Helmet to bolster recoil damage taken when it's hit (I'd favor Lefties, but Helmet is still great if you have item clause in effect).

For Ludicolo, I feel like Fake Out is unnecessary; Hidden Power or Focus Blast are both far more useful unless you're using Ludicolo to finish off something that's already severely weakened or if you REALLY need something to flinch. I'd personally just run it with HP and SpAtt, which would throw off the balance, but make it more capable of sponging up Special hits as well as dishing them out.

Overall, I like the team; the pokemon you've chosen are of types that benefit a typing that is defensively weak, so no one Grass-type weakness shows up on more than half your team (Bug aside, but that's a less-used offensive typing and Bug types are still handled well by Cradily and Ferrothorn). Talonflame is really the only thing that's severely threatening to you, since Flare Blitz can eat you alive, but it's going to be severely damaged if not killed outright by recoil if you allow Ferrothorn to take the hit. You may also want to watch out for Sap Sipper Azumarill or Miltank, as they could both get Att boosts from most of your pokemon and counter effectively; Goodra packs Sap Sipper as well, although Dragons in general will be a bit difficult to handle. A few other options you may wish to consider may be:

Breloom @ Choice Scarf
Technician
Jolly
4 HP, 252 Att, 252 Speed
- Bullet Seed
- Mach Punch/Force Palm
- Rock Tomb
- Spore

If you don't mind swapping Rotom's Scarf out for something else, this could be an effective physical attacker. Bullet Seed can be especially dangerous since it can break through Substitutes and with Technician and STAB facotred in each hit has a BP of 56, so even two hits from this will be just short of Seed Bomb's power. Priority plus Scarf might seem redundant but Technician-backed Mach Punch is nothing to sneeze at, especially with Breloom's 130 base Att; if you're worried about power though Force Palm is a great replacement that has a pretty good rate of Paralysis. Rock Tomb will make sure Talonflame and Charizard think twice about switching in on him. Spore is, of course, Spore, incapacitating an enemy very effectively and again making many threats think twice about coming in on it.

Whimsicott @ Leftovers/Big Root/Mental Herb
Prankster
Jolly/Timid
252 HP, 252 Speed, 4 whatever
- Substitute
- Leech Seed
- Encore
- Moonblast/Knock Off/Protect

This one's a bit risky, but can be insanely annoying for enemies to try and cope with. Substitute (or Protect) can be used to scout out the opponent's moves safely, then you can more easily do what you need to do. It's a great pokemon for screwing with setup users, since if they set up first turn, you can lock them permanently into their setup moves while slowly syphoning their HP up with Leech Seed unless they happen to be a Grass type themselves or they decide to switch out. If you opt out of Protect, you could either go with Moonblast for a straight-up attack or Knock Off for utility. Lefties is best for the HP recovery, but you could maximize Leech Seed recovery with Big Root or save yourself from an Encore or Taunt with Mental Herb.

Trevenant @ Sitrus Berry
Harvest
Adamant
252 HP, 252 Att, 4 Def/SpDef
- Horn Leech/Leech Seed/Substitute
- Horn Leech/Leech Seed/Substitute
- Phantom Force
- Earthquake

This thing can be an absolute pain to deal with. EQ helps you deal with Fire and Poison types while Phantom Force can hit through Protect and Substitutes in case you opponent locks himself into a move and/or they have no Normal types on their side. You can of course run SubSeed, but Horn Leech works well too, being a physical Giga Drain. Sitrus Berry is more or less a must to take full advantage of Harvest, but if yu're feeling adventurous you could rock another type of Berry, such as Rowap or Jacoba to help counter attacking pokemon (in which case you'll want to trade Att EVs out for the appropriate type of defense) or a stat boosting berry to make it that much more threatening.

 

[Sitherio]

Do you have recommendations of who you would switch out for each of those choices?

I thought Ferroseed with Eviolite would be worth it but I didn't run the numbers and definitely see a higher benefit from Ferrothorn now.

I never realized Bullet Seed from Breloom could be that terrifying.

Whimsicott does seem like fun and can be an effective counter to Dragons if I use Moonblast.

Trevenant with Harvest is also beautiful and a great consideration.

Thanks for the tips. Keep them coming.

 

[Prakhar]

I just say replace Cradily with Amoonguss, it's sooooo much better!

Also, shiftry is better than cradily, dont know if it gets swords dance and sucker punch though.

 

[Onyx Tanuki]

Do you have recommendations of who you would switch out for each of those choices?

I thought Ferroseed with Eviolite would be worth it but I didn't run the numbers and definitely see a higher benefit from Ferrothorn now.

I never realized Bullet Seed from Breloom could be that terrifying.

Whimsicott does seem like fun and can be an effective counter to Dragons if I use Moonblast.

Trevenant with Harvest is also beautiful and a great consideration.

Thanks for the tips. Keep them coming.

Breloom and Trevenant would both be replacements for Shiftry, since they take on the physical attack role, although with Breloom, if you're running item clause, you'd need to swap Rotom's item to Specs or Expert Belt. Whimsicott I mostly put as a fun alternate option for anything you happen to want to swap it out for.

I just say replace Cradily with Amoonguss, it's sooooo much better!

Also, shiftry is better than cradily, dont know if it gets swords dance and sucker punch though.

I'm not sure what you've got against Cradily, but it's a really damn good pokemon. I'm not gonna deny that Amoongus is great, but since it's a Grass/Poison I'd say it'd have to take Venusaur's place instead; it's got a bit better lasting power but less offensive presence. If that replacement was made, though, then we'd need another Mega, and the only other Grass type Megas are Sceptile and Abomasnow. Sceptile is fairly predictable as a special attacker, though. Abomasnow can easily swap between physical and special or even mixed, and is fairly bulky, but has crap typing, is slow, and Snow Warning doesn't work with a Grass team well at all, and its non-Mega form just isn't strong either to justify using on a team that uses OU rules, especially with threats like Talonflame out there.

That does remind me, though, Cradily could actually run a physical set if you so choose:

Cradily @ Leftovers
Suction Cups
Impish
252 HP, 4 Att, 252 Def
- Rock Slide
- Recover
- Swords Dance
- Sandstorm

Although you do need support to ensure Cradily's biggest threats (particularly powerful Fighting and Steel types, though it's also a good idea with this set to take down opposing Rock and Ground types too) are gone first, if you can swap it in on something that you know will switch out, this can be incredibly difficult to handle. Rock Slide is the better attack since there's nothing in the game immune to Rock, and Sandstorm can build up residual damage while bolstering Cradily's SpDef (which is why I put the EVs into Def instead here). SD to buff its offensive power, Recover to heal up. Suction Cups prevents it from being phased out and losing its Att buffs (and while Clear Smog and Haze are sill out there, they're pretty rare). This set would more than likely replace Shiftry, and give you room for another dedicated Special wall, or allow you to shift some of your other pokemon's roles around.

Oh, and before I forget, one of the most threatening Special attackers in OU:

Shaymin @ Life Orb/Choice Scarf
Natural Cure
Modest/Timid
4 HP, 252 SpAtt, 252 Speed
- Seed Flare
- Earth Power
- Air Slash
- Dazzling Gleam

People seem to forget this guy's in OU, despite the fact that its alternate form is Ubers. Seed Flare is disgustingly powerful, and all of its other moves are great for handling threats to your team: Air Slash takes down Bug and Grass types while Earth Power handles Fire, Poison, and Steel types, and Dazzling Gleam offers you that perfect Ground/Fairy coverage. Modest Life Orb makes it a disgustingly powerful wallbreaker thanks to its godly coverage options, while Timid Scarf acts as a decent revenge killer and sweeper. Either variant would be a good option to take Rotom's place, or the Life Orb variant could replace Cacturne if you trade Cradily for another physically offensive pokemon.

Amoongus @ Black Sludge
Regenerator
Calm/Bold
252 HP, 252 Def/SpDef, 4 Def/SpDef/SpAtt
- Foul Play/Hidden Power [Fire]
- Synthesis/Giga Drain
- Spore
- Clear Smog/Sludge Bomb/Substitute

Just in case you're interested in using it. Amoongus really is a decent pokemon, with excellent bulk and recovery options. Foul Play can hit a lot of physically-powerful pokemon hard, while HP Fire handles Steel types that would resist its STABs. Giga Drain and Synthesis work as recovery options when you don't thing it'd be wise to switch out. Spore can neuter a lot of threats, and pretty much anything that can use Spore should anyway, so. For the last option, Clear Smog destroys setups if you've already put something to sleep or if the opposition is a Grass type or has Sap Sipper, while Sludge Bomb is just an all-out powerful attack, and Sub prevents Amoongus from being hit by status and gives it more time to heal up. Also, just for reference, I believe the fully physically defensive variant can actually take an unboosted Flare Blitz or Brave Bird from Talonflame and finish it off with Foul Play if both are facing off against one another at full health (though you'll need to be careful not to take hit from Banded variant or from one that's Swords Danced against you; also if the opponent hits you at full health after swapping in with Rock on his side, he's just plain stupid if Amoongus isn't your last pokemon and/or Talonflame is his).

Amoongus @ Assault Vest
Regenerator
Modest/Bold
252 HP, 4 Def, 252 SpAtt
- Foul Play
- Hidden Power [Fire/Rock]
- Giga Drain/Energy Ball
- Clear Smog/Sludge Bomb

AV Amoongus is a thing, yes, and it can actually be pretty frightening. The moves listed serve about the same purpose as above; you're basically sacrificing Spore for better overall stats. This one doesn't stand on its own quite as well though since more of its recovery is going to come from Regenerator, especially if you opt for Energy Ball over Giga Drain. While HP Fire is standard, I included Rock as an anti-Flying option. Whether you go for this or the previous variant, it'd likely take Venusaur's spot since both are Grass/Poison.